The personal blog of Reyn Bowman, a Durham NC resident, 40-year veteran of community-destination marketing and still an explorer in community sense-of-place. Opinions expressed here are those of the author.

Saturday, May 21, 2011

Proof That Festivals Can Leverage Community Improvement And Help Change Lives

The research showed that after involvement in documentary filmmaking, “at-promise” youth, a term Ms. Haj prefers to “at-risk:”

84% of youth reported learning more about important issues of their own choosing,

86% of participating youth believing their work could make a difference,

91% saying their opinions matter, and

91% of participating youth are interested in continuing their education after high school.

Durham is fortunate to not only have a wider range of signature festivals than other communities but the fact that the majority are homegrown contributes to the community’s unique-sense-of-place and personality.

And as Full Frame Documentary Film Festival is proving, the difference they can make doesn’t stop there!